University of Texas linguists have discovered the language of a 23-year-old
immigrant who has sat in jail while language experts for months tried to
communicate with him.

Octavio Luis Perez, accused of kidnapping and raping a 17-year-old girl in April
in Mesa, speaks Northern Mam, court documents indicate. The ancient language is
a Mayan dialect spoken by a few thousand people in Mexico and Guatemala,
according to language experts.

Maricopa County Superior Court interpreters spent more than six months
contacting linguists around the country to try to determine Perez's native
tongue.

It was the first time in recent
history that court interpreters could not determine a defendant's language,
court officials said.